Subject of Shininess
by Jessesgirl1549
Summary: "Your dragons want to eat me"... He didn't attempt to make contact with her after that. River liked to watch people, but he was new. He was Shiny. Post episode 12ish - Post Serenity.  Slight AU.


**A/n: My first time writing for Firefly, some OCCness is possible. Post- Episode 12 to Post-_Serenity_.**

**I don't own Firefly.  
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River didn't like him the first time she saw him.

"Dragons are wild in his blood," she told Kaylee when they caught their first glimpse of him on board. Kaylee would've given her a strange look if she wasn't so use to River's cryptic, sometimes meaningless, murmurs. But she didn't because she _was _use to River's insane babble. Instead, Kaylee asked her if she wanted to offer the stranger a drink. River said no and laid under the dining table, watching the man with "dragons in his blood".

He was a passenger, needing transport to his home on Beaumonde. Boarding on New Melbourne, meant that he would be with them for three weeks. However, knowing the crew of _Serenity _and their frequent tendencies to run into prolonging circumstances, River estimated he'd be abroad for more than a month and a half. To say she was happy about that, would not be at all valid, but it was not completely untrue either.

She liked to watch him. Of course, she liked watching everyone. But he was new, he was, as Mal would say, "shiny". But Kaylle was "Shiny". River refused to call him by his name, so she called him "Slick".

Shortly after they departed from New Melbourne, River developed a schedule around observing Slick.

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When he woke up, she was already awake, waiting for him to sit in the kitchen and eat his breakfast - which consisted of a fresh fruit and juice, as well as casual conversation with Inara and Simon. Slick attempted to speak to River upon his first days abroad. He had introduced himself and in return, she stared back at him and said, "Your dragons want to eat me". After that, she walked away to watch him from the monitors in the cockpit. Slick didn't attempt to make contact with her after that.

While he was cleaning up after his morning meal, River went to the cargo bay and laid on top of a high container. She counted to two thousand, and Slick and Jayne arrived. They sparred, for Slick was skilled with blades and made his living on preforming martial artistry. River familiarized herself with their movements and styles, and pondered a possible match between herself and Slick... perhaps after the dragons stopped snapping at her.

After Jayne walked out of the cargo bay with his usual fresh bruise, or wound of some sort, River use that as a cue to go visit Inara. Inara would be typing a message to friends, fellow Companions, and welcome River to sit and look around at the new things Inara would pick up at various ports. River always sat on the left corner of the end of her bed and picked up the same box of incense. And as soon as she was seated on the smooth silk sheets, she counted to two thousand again.

Slick regularly knocked twice on Inara's door before she let him in. He came in with his long russet-ebony hair tied away from his face, modestly freshened from a quick cleansing washing of his face, but still moderately damp with sweat from his sparring with Jayne. Inara smiled at him and they sat together on cushions she kept stored under her bed. Slick liked the purple one with fringes. (River liked that one too.) They meditated and talked about art and their own travels together, while River went about ways she could ask Inara for the nice musky, fresh, rain incense.

When they were done with their hour and a half long meeting, Inara saw him to the door and bid him farewell until lunch time.

River was upside down, hanging off her bed, when Inara turned her attention back to her. River would tell her, "His dragons sleep when you speak softly to him", as she held the rain incense to her nose. Inara laughed and they had tea, whispering about Simon and the others on-board.

Then River would see Simon after going to Inara, spend time with her brother as he read through his medical books and planned future plans for them. She listened to him talk and answered when she needed to, but mostly allowed herself to think of other things. (Like rain, Sai swords, grey eyes, and fire.)

"Simon?" She had asked once, "do dragons like rain? They are fire-breathing creatures in most tales, but in some, they live in water."

Her brother didn't know what to say and declared it was time for lunch. She made him wait for 2.76 minutes before they went to the dining place, "girl things" was all Simon needed to know to stand outside her room. (Of course she never told him what she was doing those near-three minutes. She wasn't quite sure why she did it, but she was combing her hair.)

At lunch everyone would be assembled for the first time during the day. Either Kaylee, or Jayne - who surprisingly was a skilled cook - would fix the afternoon meals and Wash would make supper. Mal sat at the head of the table, Kaylee on his right and Zoe on his left. Next to Zoe was Wash and beside Kaylee was Simon. Seated alongside Wash was Inara, who sat next to Jayne. At the end of the table was Book, who was beside Slick. River - by choice and because there was no room at the table - ate under the console.

Conversation usually aboded by the progress of everyone's chores and duties and pleasantries. The couple weeks in after Slick's boarding, the crew inquired about him. He had been surprised because before, on the ships he had taken in his travels around the 'verse, the crew had not tried to get to know him. However, he was happy to share with them.

"-My parents were mostly of Korean decent, however my father had some Irish genes in him," Slick had disclosed once simultaneous to Jayne's probing of his background.

That was the first time River had spoken to him, she tugged on Slick's pant leg and poked her head into view, under Simon's arm. River looked Slick in the eye and said, "Dangsin-ui hyeol-aeg-e domabaem-eun aillaendeueo jajonsim ttaemun-e hwagaibnida."*

Everyone stopped talking and eating to watch the exchange. Simon looked sheepishly at River and moved her out from under his arm. After a brief pause, Slick blinked and cocked his head to the side. Almost in the same way she would.

"Is that so?"

Instead of replying, River stole a roll from Simon's plate and sank back down under the table. Her hair hiding her satisfied smile.

After lunch, they went back to their duties and River went to sit with Book in the cargo bay, until the next meal. Book would discuss philosophy with her, though she would often question the topics and demand logic from some of the religious views they were linked to. When Book took out his journals on philosophy, she started counting. This time to four thousand.

When the count down hit zero in her head, Kaylee would come in to retrieve tools, because "there's always _something" _that needed to be repaired on _Serenity_. And Slick would be at her heels, changed in the same practical clothing he wore when he sparred and meditated, ready to help her as part of his chores. Book would help them find what they needed. River observed the way Slick would choose his gadgets and the trick of his brow furrowing in thoughtful contemplation.

At supper, things would go on much like lunch, only they were much more exhausted and parley was more about what had been accomplished and playful banter. River would lean against Simon's legs as she nibbled on her food, catching glimpses of Slick's arms and hands moving about the table. She pondered about how far his "Hanja" script tattoos extended past the view of his exposed arms and legs.

Then the party would retire - Wash and Zoe being the only ones who would do so - or lounge around the living space in evening activities. Jayne lifted weights with Book, Kaylee tinkered with gizmos and gadgets, Mal would play chess with Simon, and Inara braided and played with River's hair. Of course Slick would be there as well, talking with them.

At one time - the third week Slick had been on board - Inara asked River if she would like her to straighten her hair. "Just to experiment." Before River could reply, Simon refused for her, saying she was fine the way she was.

"Simon," River said, "it's _my _hair Simon."

"I know Mei-Mei, but you're so pretty already. Why would you want to knock us poor men into comas, and make Inara and Kaylee so jealous?" Simon asked in return, moving his knight on the chess board and smiling at her.

River fingered her long curls thoughtfully for a few minutes after that, while Inara brushed it with her ivory comb. She wound it around her fingers and played with it, then noticed a set of stormy eyes on her.

"Hey girl, you sick, or somethin'?" Jayne called out her blush, shifting his weight to his left side as he bent to pick up the one hundred and fifty pound dumbbell before him.

She narrowed her eyes at him as Inara felt her forehead and Simon started to fuss. "Distributing weight incorrectly will result in injury that can only be categorized by stupidity and carelessness."

'What're are you-Mother fu-!"

Simon found himself caring for Jayne's shattered foot instead of his sister alleged fever that night.

On her way to bed, she approached Slick heading to shower. They passed in the hallway, so River did a U-turn and followed him until he stopped to question her. Her stare caused him to go silent. River pointed to her hair.

"Did the dragons want my hair straight?" she asked innocently.

Slick didn't understand but he smiled down at her anyway, he hesitantly caught a lock of her hair between his fingers and told her, "No. Your brother was right, the way you look now is more than fine."

River pulled his hand away from her hair and stared at it, as if trying to look through his olive flesh. She muttered, "The dragons are sleeping... maybe they know they will be wet, are they water dragons, or fire dragons?"

"Water dragons," he replied chuckling and shuffling into the washroom.

Then River went to bed, happy to know what to do the next time, when the dragons wanted to eat her.

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As she predicted, the crew managed to hit obstacles along the way to Beaumonde. Alliance wanting to capture her, small jobs that lead to them risking their lives, business gone bad - the usual things. Slick wasn't use to many of the situations that happened, but Mal assured him he would, and River agreed. During a stand off with local patrol on a mining moon, River comforted him in her own way, "Stay low, if they shoot you, it's okay. Simon will fix it. If that doesn't work, Preacher man will say a prayer and your dragons will heal you"... It didn't help much when he was shot in the leg.

After Slick's injury, River stopped wondering and observing, and started asking and helping.

During sparring, she would ask to join them and they would practice hand-to-hand combat. (Jayne sat out, claiming, "There ain't no way, I'm be a'fightin' this crazy.") River won most of the time, showing him what he was doing wrong.

When she went to Inara's quarters, she was the one who let him in and she sat on the floor with them when they meditated. The moon-brained girl sat close to him, admiring quietly. Her favored incense no longer held tightly to her face, but in her lap for her fingertips to brush over as she hummed to herself. As Inara brought up art and travel, River was allowed to share as well, brought in mostly by Slick. The attention made her happy, and she wasn't so sore about him having the purple cushion... anymore.

He even stayed for tea and talked more.

River would never forget the time she mentioned the "wedding incident" that occurred months before his arrival.

Slick nearly choked on his sweet tea, coughing and laughing at the same time. He looked at her astonished, "You wanted to marry Simon?"

"I love Simon," she replied, emotionless, but with seriousness.

He stopped laughing and Inara sipped her tea quietly, watching with amusement. Slick cleared his throat after a moment, "I'm sure you do... I'm sorry, *jag-eun hana."

Her serious expression faded and she smiled at him, telling him, "Mal calls me "little one". And I know Simon and I can't get married. He is my brother, and that would be wrong. Simon and Preacher man told me that."

"For a few hours..." Inara chimed in, refilling River's cup.

That was a good day, Slick let her play with his Sai swords and she played footsie with him during supper. (She cleverly framed Kaylee for it though, seeing as Kaylee had been trying to do the same to Simon.)

Eventually River decided that he was going to be, "in her orbit", until they arrived in Beaumonde. As she had done with almost each member of the crew - not counting Wash and Simon, for Simon was her big brother and she had a reason to be close to him. And Wash because he wouldn't let her pilot when he was away from the helm - River latched on to Slick. Becoming the closest person to him on _Serenity_. (Even if the dragons still didn't like her very much.)

Slick didn't mind so much to have her around, he'd only be frustrated when River would take his swords and other possessions while he tried helping Kaylee with her work. River always protested though, claiming if they were important, he would have noticed sooner, therefore justifying her actions in an attempt to keep what she stole. However she would eventually give them back. (Although she would just go and do the same thing again the next day.) He forgave every time.

After the time she stole one of his T-shirts, he locked this things away. Because River confronted him about being gullible when he came to retrieve his shirt. She was wearing it over her dress and took it off upon his arrival on the crime scene. Handing the baggy clothing to him, she said, "Don't bother getting mad, you know the dragons will forgive me. They are too forgiving when I say "sorry"."

He didn't talk to her until the end of his first month with them. It was all right though, she brought him Inara's purple cushion and his missing boots - which he had been looking for, for nearly six days - and cold sweet tea for the dragons.

Slick accepted the offerings and forgave her again.

Most likely because he didn't really know how to stay mad at her - (Simon had told him that was just River's effect on people.) and possibly because he was lonely without her presence.

That was another reason why River wanted to be close to him, he seemed very alone. No matter how much interaction he had with the other, no matter how long he sat up talking to his family members via transmission, he looked lost and out of place. Not particularly the way she was, but more of the way Mal was. With a barrier that made it hard for people to come in and know him.

So River took it on herself to learn about him, no matter she knew much from her psychic inklings about Slick.

"You can touch it if you want," she told him while they sat at the dining table.

It's the middle of the night, the night after Inara's departure, and he couldn't sleep, whereas River refused to sleep since her day ended with seeing him off to his quarters. He was staring at her hand on the table and his thoughts had crept into her head, he wanted to hold her hand and see if it was soft and delicate. "Like _his _mei-mei's," she smiled at him and moved her hand over to his, letting their fingertips brush.

Slick cradled her small hand in his larger one. His hand is sweaty and warm, and hers is cool and fine. _No callouses?_ He thinks, recalling the things he knew and had seen of River's greatly brilliant fighting.

The beautiful, dark-haired girl grinned wider when he doesn't compare her to his mei-mei again. She doesn't want to be like his _mei-mei_, she wants to be his _salang_. But her smile faded when his thoughts of another were loud in her head. And she wondered if there was anyone that could not think about _her_, and just about River. River knew it was bad to think like that, envy was nothing she should have held.

Still, River held Slick's hand and they talked about the stormy eyes and stars. And when he went to bed, she returned to her room. She sat on the purple cushion she was allowed to keep and she smelled the rain incense, deciding not to light it yet.

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Finally, after much time, they reached Beaumonde.

Slick's family was waiting for him. His father, his mother, his mei-mei and her husband, and the reason why he had to return. His toddler nephew, he was there as well. And he was just as happy to see them, as they were to see him.

Goodbyes weren't as hard as they were with Book and Inara, but Kaylee almost cried and Simon complained how he would not have any sane company beside Wash and Zoe. Mal wished Slick well and shook his hand, telling him that he could call on them anytime he needed. Jayne made him promise a future rematch, Wash sent him off with a dinosaur, and Zoe gave him quick advice on shiny ways to intimidate people. River didn't say goodbye. She stole his shirt again and hid behind crates in the cargo bay.

"River," Slick called to her, the crew and his family on port and conversing with one another, he climbed over the crate she used as a shield. He smiled at her and said, "jag-eun hana? I need my shirt back."

"The dragons don't want to be alone..." she murmured into the soft fabric of the stolen T-shirt, it smelt of him, "not good. Alone, not good... Mm, rain..."

"I brought you something River, but you have to come up here and sit with me. Will you?" _Please_. She has to do so once she hears his thoughts begging. River climbed up and sat next to him, clutching the T-shirt. He hugged her with one arm, "if you like that one so much..."

He took the shirt from her and laid it flat on her lap, then he one of the two Sai swords on his belt, and he wrapped it in the cloth. He squeezed her hands around it and hugged her again. Slick told her, "Keep this for me, jag-eun hana?"

River looked at the gift with joy and then back into his soft, grey eyes. She patted his cheek and whispered, "The dragons may love Inara, but I love them more."

"Goodbye River."

Slick left with his family, his serpents swimming sadly in his blood.

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After Miranda, River lit the rain-scented incense and took a seat before the monitor, on the purple cushion with her small sword in her lap. She turned the monitor on and waited, counting to two thousand as always.

Finally, slitted grey-eyes and a soft smile look back at her, Slick greeted her with her usual nickname, but she didn't greet him with his. She said his name instead, for he wasn't "shiny", or "slick" with newness anymore. He was dull and familiar, but she didn't mind. In fact, River liked it.

She shrugged off his surprised expression she asked him, "Do the dragons miss me now, Young-Jae?"

"I miss you very much River."

River smiled, *"Miseu neo jeongmal, nae oeloun mul yong-i. boja dangsin-i god. ne?"

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**A/n: Just a little River love story. **

**A lot of writers pair her with other characters, but I thought it would be nice to have someone new for her, who was not too impressed with her. I dunno, I just thought she needed a love of her own. Kind of confusing and a little hard to understand, but I hoped you all liked the fic.**

**And "Slick's" real name is Jung Young-Jae.**

**I used Korean actor, "Rain" for inspiration. One of his roles was a young man named "Young-Jae", who was in a mental institute and I thought, "Oh, perfect guy for River". He also knows Martial Arts, and used Sai swords in the film _Ninja _**_**Assassin**_**. **

**Also, in an interview, Summer Lyn Glau (River's actress) said if she was to die and be reborn, she'd like to be a dragon.**

***"Dangsin-ui hyeol-aeg-e domabaem-eun aillaendeueo jajonsim ttaemun-e hwagaibnida." - "The dragons in your blood are angry because of your Irish pride"**

***"jag-eun hana" - is "Little one."**

***"Miseu neo jeongmal, nae oeloun mul yong-i. boja dangsin-i god. ne?" - "Miss you very much, my lonely water dragon. See you soon. Yes?"**

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**Reviews and feedback would be greatly appreciated :3**


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